Coin operated shaving system



Feb. 11, 1964 H. THALHElM COIN OPERATED SHAVING SYSTEM 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 3, 1961 IIEIIFIIWIIE Eli /9 1 Feb. 11, 1964 H. THALHEIM 0, 8

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INVENTOR fiflF/Q y 777494 HE/M TI MELR United States Patent 3,120,836 CUIN OPERATED SHAVING SYSTEM Harry Thalheim, 161 W. 78th St., New York 24, N.Y. Filed Oct. 3, 1961, Ser- No. 142,625 3 Claims. (-81. 194-67) This invention relates to an improved, automatic, coinoperated, public shaving system. This invention also relates to a novel type of business establishment featuring a plurality of automatic shaving appliances available under sanitary conditions to different members of the public.

A need has existed for a long time for a shaving emporium where people may shave cheaply and rapidly at all hours of the day and night. While there have been many suggestions along this line, the fact remains that this facility does not exist today on a commercial scale. This may be due to the high cost of providing coinoperated shaving appliances, to the difliculty in obtaining proper sanitation thereto or it might be due to the ease with which the shaving units can be stolen by the users.

The main object of this invention is to provide a novel service which will have sanitary, efficient and burglarproof shaving facilities at a low installation cost.

A related object of this invention is to provide a novel coin operated appliance for this service.

An equally important object of this invention is to provide a new sanitary means for disinfecting the shaving units.

A further object of this invention is to provide means associated with the appliance whereby an alarm will be given if an attempt is made to steal it.

Other objects of this invention will in part be obvious and in part h reinafter pointed out.

In the accompanying drawing, in which is shown one of the various possible illustrative embodiments of this invention,

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of an establishment in accordance with the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of one of the units shown in operative use;

FIGURE 3 is a cross section through line 3-3 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a diagram of the air system for removing whiskers and dirt from shaving units;

FIGURE 5 is a wiring diagram of a shaving unit in accordance with the invention;

FIGURE 6 is a top view of one of the units;

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of the unit on which the shaver rests;

FIGURE 8 is a view showing how the coin controls the timing device.

Referring now to the drawing, FIGURE 1 shows the appearance of an establishment embodying the concept of the present invention. As shown, the establishment consists of a room having ordinary or reflecting mirrors 10 along its walls 12. Suitably, the floor 14 may have written thereon the name of the establishment. Posi' tioned below the mirrors 10, are cabinets having a trans parent door, 18 slidably mounted on runners 17 and 19. Below the cabinets 16 each, is a table member 20 extending into the room. A second member 22 may be positioned below and parallel member 20 so as to define an object-receiving compartment 24 therebetween. Lights 26 are provided in the ceiling and closet space 21 in the wall.

A cabinet 16, shown in detail in FIGURES 2 and 3, may be constructed of metal or of plastic and is mounted in walls 12. The cabinet 16 has side walls 38 and 4t] and a back wall 23 provided with an upper opening 30 and a central opening 32, top and bottom walls 34 and 36,

meted opening 30 in the backwall of the cabinet.

respectively, having flared portions extending from wall 26 to support a front wall 42 which slidably mounts door 18. Passing through opening 32 is a rectangular foraminous member 44 which acts as a receiver and divides the cabinet into an upper and lower compartment. Member 44 is fiat and has an outlet opening 48 connected by a pipe 46 leading to a dust bin.

As shown on FIGURES 2 and 6, a latch 50 operated from the coin box throughpivoted lever Sll engages one end of door 18 to keep the same closed until a coin has been deposited. Such coin box is of any standard construction and has been shown diagrammatically. The coin box is mounted on the wallby screws52. As shown in FIGURE 8, placing a coin in slot 54 will move toothed wheel 56in the direction indicated by the arrow and will start a timer linked therewith by belt 58. Wheel 56 is connected to lever 51 by suitable means such as gear wheels so that movement thereof will disengage'the latch 56 from door 18 to permit its opening. It should be noted that the timer forms no part of the invention and may for example be of the type shown in U.S. Patent 2,672,969. As indicated in FIGURE 5, the timer is connected to an electric shaver 60 having shaving head 62 by means of conventional wires contained in cord 64 trained over pulley 66 which is mounted on bracket 68. The bracket is secured to wall 28 of the cabinet. The shaver may be of any conventional type but is preferably of the supersonic type. A weight 70 is clampedon the end of cord '64 near its connection with the source of current. Cord 64 passes through grom- Shaver 60 when not in use rests on the top of member 44 so as tobe cleaned of whiskers and dirt by the stream of air passing from pipe 66 'on through the foraminations in 44 and on to the dust bin. FIGURE 3 shows pipe 66 secured to the reflector 68 of germicidal lamp 70 mounted on the top wall of the cabinet immediately above foraminations 72 provided therein. As shown pipe 66 connects with the rest of the cleaning system through an opening in reflector 68. For greater concentration of light and air, a second reflector 74 is positioned on the underside of top wall 34. A container of menthol crystals and a filter are included in the air circulation system in which circulation is provided by motor driven fan 76. The fan and the germicidal lamp may be on at all times, or connected to the timer for limited operation, as desired. Alternately, they may be separately energized, with the energization controlled by separate switches.

For the further convenience of the user, there is provided in each cabinet a dispenser unit 78 for supplying lotion. The unit is mounted in the back wall of the cabinet by means of its rigid supply pipe 80 which is secured in the cabinet and has a downwardly inclined opening. In FIG. 5, a burglar alarm 84 is shown operably associated with the timer circuit or the shaver. The alarm will sound if the cord linking the shaver with the circuit is cut. Cord 64 contains four wires 86, 88, 98 and 92. Wires 9t and 92 are connected to the source of current through the timer and are normally not energized unless a coin has been inserted. Wire connects with a magnetic core plunger and wire 92 connects also with core 94. Wire 88 is wound around plunger 94. As long as current passes through the shaver, the alarm obviously will not ring since it will not be in the circuit.

It will thus be seen that there is provided a device in which the several objects of this invention are achieved and which is well adapted to meet the conditions of practical use.

As various embodiments might be made of the above invention and as various changes might be made in the embodiment aboveset forth, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawing is to be interpreted as illustrative and not as limitative of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A shave-yourself establishment comprising a room having a ceiling, a floor, and walls from said ceiling to said floor; mirrors mounted along the lengths of the walls extending from the ceiling to a predetermined distance from said floors; a shelf mounted along the lengths of the walls spaced from the bottom of said mirrors to provide a table area; a plurality of cabinets mounted in the walls between said mirrors and shelf being spaced from one another, each cabinet defining a chamber having a back wall with two openings therethrough one above the other, a top wall with perforations, and a reflector encircling the perforations connected to the top wall and depending therefrom; a plurality of germicidal lamps each having a reflector with an opening therethrough and being supported on the top wall of one of said cabinets alined with the perforation thereof, a plurality of blowers each connected to one of the germicidal lamps to provide air flow through the reflector thereof and perforations in the top wall below such lamp to the chamber in one of the cabinets; a plurality of receiver tmembers disposed in said cabinet chambers and extending through the lower openings in the back walls thereof, each of said members defining a receiver chamber and having a top wall with openings therethrough to provide communication for the air flow from such cabinet chamber to the receiver; a plurality of dust bins each connecting one of the receiver members to the fan providing air flow to the cabinet in which such receiver member is disposed and providing a trap for shavings from the receiver chamber; a plurality of electric shavers each removably disposed in one of the cabinets on the top wall of the receiver member therein and cleaned of hair shavings by the air flow therethrough, each shaver having an extension cord passing through the upper opening in the back wall of the cabinet in which said shaver is disposed; a plurality of pulleys mounted on the back wall of said cabinets for supporting the shaver extension cords; a plurality of weights connected to the extension cords and spaced from the shavers to urge said cords out of the cabinets when such shavers are replaced therein; a plurality of doors each slidably mounted on one of said cabinets for closing the chamber therein; a plurality of latch mechanisms each normally holding one of said doors in its position closing a cabinet chamber, a plurality of coin boxes each having a toothed wheel operably connected to one of the latch mechanisms for releasing one of the doors when a coin .is inserted therein; a plurality of timing mechanisms I of time; and a plurality of electric alarm switches each having a holding coil connected to one of the extension cords to receive current for holding the switch in inoperative position which is energized to operate an alarm when the holding coil is de-energized.

2. The establishment in accordance with claim 1 in which each of said cabinets and said receiver members have bottom Walls spaced from one another to provide a linen storage chamber below the receiver chamber in each of the cabinets.

3. The establishment in accordance with claim 1 in which a second shelf is mounted along the lengths of the walls and is spaced below the shelf spaced from the bottom of the mirrors to provide storage space therebetween.

Referenccs Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,764,424 Swanson June 17, 1930 2,591,288 Pitchford Apr. 1, 1952 2,927,338 Burton u Mar. 8, 1960 

1. A SHAVE-YOURSELF ESTABLISHMENT COMPRISING A ROOM HAVING A CEILING, A FLOOR, AND WALLS FROM SAID CEILING TO SAID FLOOR; MIRRORS MOUNTED ALONG THE LENGTHS OF THE WALLS EXTENDING FROM THE CEILING TO A PREDETERMINED DISTANCE FROM SAID FLOORS; A SHELF MOUNTED ALONG THE LENGTHS OF THE WALLS SPACED FROM THE BOTTOM OF SAID MIRRORS TO PROVIDE A TABLE AREA; A PLURALITY OF CABINETS MOUNTED IN THE WALLS BETWEEN SAID MIRRORS AND SHELF BEING SPACED FROM ONE ANOTHER, EACH CABINET DEFINING A CHAMBER HAVING A BACK WALL WITH TWO OPENINGS THERETHROUGH ONE ABOVE THE OTHER, A TOP WALL WITH PERFORATIONS, AND A REFLECTOR ENCIRCLING THE PERFORATIONS CONNECTED TO THE TOP WALL AND DEPENDING THEREFROM; A PLURALITY OF GERMICIDAL LAMPS EACH HAVING A REFLECTOR WITH AN OPENING THERETHROUGH AND BEING SUPPORTED ON THE TOP WALL OF ONE OF SAID CABINETS ALINED WITH THE PERFORATION THEREOF, A PLURALITY OF BLOWERS EACH CONNECTED TO ONE OF THE GERMICIDAL LAMPS TO PROVIDE AIR FLOW THROUGH THE REFLECTOR THEREOF AND PERFORATIONS IN THE TOP WALL BELOW SUCH LAMP TO THE CHAMBER IN ONE OF THE CABINETS; A PLURALITY OF RECEIVER MEMBERS DISPOSED IN SAID CABINET CHAMBERS AND EXTENDING THROUGH THE LOWER OPENINGS IN THE BACK WALLS THEREOF, EACH OF SAID MEMBERS DEFINING A RECEIVER CHAMBER AND HAVING A TOP WALL WITH OPENINGS THERETHROUGH TO PROVIDE COMMUNICATION FOR THE AIR FLOW FROM SUCH CABINET CHAMBER TO THE RECEIVER; A PLURALITY OF DUST BINS EACH CONNECTING ONE OF THE RECEIVER MEMBERS TO THE FAN PROVIDING AIR FLOW TO THE CABINET IN WHICH SUCH RECEIVER MEMBER IS DISPOSED AND PROVIDING A TRAP FOR SHAVINGS FROM THE RECEIVER CHAMBER; A PLURALITY OF ELECTRIC SHAVERS EACH REMOVABLY DISPOSED IN ONE OF THE CABINETS ON THE TOP WALL OF THE RECEIVER MEMBER THEREIN AND CLEANED OF HAIR SHAVINGS BY THE AIR FLOW THERETHROUGH, EACH SHAVER HAVING AN EXTENSION CORD PASSING THROUGH THE UPPER OPENING IN THE BACK WALL OF THE CABINET IN WHICH SAID SHAVER IS DISPOSED; A PLURALITY OF PULLEYS MOUNTED ON THE BACK WALL OF SAID CABINETS FOR SUPPORTING THE 